Paperrater.com

Nothing takes the place of actual feedback on your writing. You should know that feedback generally involves three stages from the initial impression of the manuscript, to plot, theme, and other elements, to the final stage of grammar and punctuation.

This is where I like Paperrater.com. Don’t get me wrong- no program really offers 100% accuracy in this area. Why? Mainly because it doesn’t recognize that sometimes, its ok to break the writing rules. Sometimes, its okay to use passive voice, or slang, or informal language.

As always “Know the writer’s rules to understand when you can break them”.

That being said, the site offers a nice FREE service where you can cut and paste large section of writing and have the service rate it. You get a handy report that breaks it all down as well.

I’ve looked at a site called grammarly.com as well (which seems to be down right now), but I find their free version limits the words you can have checked, and then you find fees start to accrue.

Post in comments your thoughts on automatic, robot-driven paper checkers, or your own experiences with this type of service.

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The publishing to Kindle Singles…so far

Learning how to format the document for Kindle singles took a bit longer than expected, but it is done. The short story is official published. Unfortunately, I screwed up the book cover on the first try so that needs to be fixed before I post the link to my blog. I wanted to share a few things that I felt were needed to be shared for those interested in this method of publishing;

Your book cover graphic should be 2500 x 1900.  Include title and the author’s name. Don’t include ‘by Your Name’. It doesn’t look right. Amazon provides a ‘placeholder’ type book cover if you don’t have one.

Preview your book before publishing. I used Mobipocket Creator (free) to create the file, and used Kindle Viewer to preview. I was rather surprised how different my book appeared in the program.

Edit and do rewrites. Remember your story goes public and will be open to reviews. Go through and check spelling, grammar, and strengthen writing before publishing. I liked using feedback from my fellow writers, but also a site called Paper Rater. It checks for a number of things and provides a report. Its also free.

Check formatting. Amazon has a pretty extensive page and PDF documents on this topics, but I found this article helpful in giving the basics and using basic language.

Check and double-check everything about the book, then publish. You will need to wait about 12 hours for it to go ‘live’, and for me, it was maybe 6 hours.

Have you published yet? What was your experience? What are your thoughts on this method of publishing? Post in comments below.

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Understanding people means understanding characters

In order to write well rounded, realistic, and provocative characters, I think writers need to delve into the murk of human psychology, to pierce into the ID and stir up understanding as to what makes a person/character tick.

Some of the best villains, for instance, are the ones we can relate to, when we ask ourselves “Would I do that if I were in that situation?”.  They work from their weaknesses, give into their desires, and serve a role as antagonist to the hero.  Villains don’t have to be evil. They don’t have to revel in pain and misery. They might, however, feel the pain and misery of others serves their goal, and therefore ‘must be done’.

Heroes, also, can have their motivations marred. The flawed hero provides the reader recognition in their own drawbacks, and they too an overcome obstacles and save the day (or be a hero).

Motivation is key to all your character, including their development through the story. Why do they do what they do? If you don’t know why your character is doing whatever action or even dialog you imagine, you’ll need to examine this.

I think a hero is an ordinary individual who finds strength to persevere and endure in spite of overwhelming obstacles. Christopher Reeve

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Writer’s Digest- a must have, in my opinion

I just recently received my issue of Writer’s Digest magazine. If you consider subscribign or getting books on writing, I feel this is a ‘must-have’ for would-be authors.

Every single issue offers tons of information on the elements of writing; from the creative part of characters, plot, dialog, and theme, to publishing and marketing your work once you’re done. You get the ‘in scoop’ from agents, authors, and publishing companies.

The Writer’s Digest web site provides tons of information, including workshops, books, and community for writers.

The magazine, by the way, is on sale at $19.95 for the year.

http://rcm.amazon.com/e/cm?t=wardenterprise0f&o=1&p=8&l=as1&asins=B00005NIPH&ref=tf_til&fc1=000000&IS2=1&lt1=_blank&m=amazon&lc1=0000FF&bc1=000000&bg1=FFFFFF&f=ifr

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Feedback on feedback

I’m not very good with feedback. This isn’t to say anyone complains, but somehow I feel I’m not providing something essential to my fellow writers when I provide them my opinion.

In a writer’s group, you often find members providing feedback to one another’s work. In fact, its expected in most.

The most crucial part of providing a critique encompasses the delicate balance of reading as an editor but also as a reader. I think here is the cruix of the matter because reading any story with a red pen tends to make one overly critical at times. I guess that’s what I feel is my issue; I feel I’m trying to errors when there might not be errors.

Plus I forget to ask the author what they’re looking for in feedback. Sometimes they want an overall impression while others want a more page-by-page, inked-up-scratched-out edit.

Elements to look for in a good story;

-Are the characters well rounded and believable? I tend to consider all the people I’ve met in my life to compare (and sometimes include in my own stories!).

-Is the conflict apparent and clear at the beginning of the story? Stories are about conflict and problems. The reader needs to know who the hero is, who to root for, and ride along in the adventure. They also need to understand the conflict the hero faces.

-Is there a theme to the story? Here is where I consider things like man vs nature or a hero’s journey. There are many themes to choose from, and most stories touches upon one or more in a single story.

-Is reading flowing and understandable for the reader? This is where you need to consider word usage, paragraph and chapter length, and other elements to writing to make reading fun and pleasurable for the reader.

-Check your is, was, were, had, has, and other useless verbs. Remove them if they weaken the verb/action. Also remove ‘it’. Ask yourself ‘what is ‘it’?’ and provide clearer description or explanation.

-Does the dialog flow?  Can you understand who is speaking?

-Does the story end with a resolution to the conflict? Sometimes the hero doesn’t win, but you still need to provide a satisfying end for the reader. Its not always a happy ending either.

What do you think? What things do you look for the most in a good story?

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Sunday Musings- Writing advice

One of my fellow writers in the meetup group posted this on our facebook page. The article is entitled “Ten bits of advice writers should stop giving to aspiring writers”.  I had to laugh with #2- “Show, don’t tell”.

The author makes a valid point “Like pretty much any three-word utterance it is oversimplified to the point of inaccuracy.” I agree. When you think about it, the advice of showing not telling does exactly that; TELLS you and doesn’t SHOW you. You must explain further to an aspiring writer what this means, especially when their writing clearly illustrates they have no concept of this idea.

I also like the “Revise, revise, revise” comment “Lots of people don’t revise and do just fine.”. This is another truth. I find many writers may need the redundant revision process, but I’ve also read stories that stood on the first draft as just fine. There’s such a thing as overthinking your writing too..

Most important when reading any advice by writers is to consider that all writers undergo their own process of authoring their work. Some require strict rules to live by while others find such confines hurts their creative process.

A great book to read is The Renegade Writer which covers a number of ‘breaking-the-rules’ authors who made it despite all the advice that tells you otherwise.

What do you think? Do you follow advice or do you often break the rules? Which rules/advice do you feel doesn’t apply to you?

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